Ski sled



July 6, 1943. R. Rjs'AMPsl-:LL 2,323,847

SKI SLED l Filed DSC. lO, 1941 Summon Gttorucg Patented July 6, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE sx1 SLED Ralph R. vrSampsell, Youngstown, OhioY Application December 10, 1941, Serial No. 422,339 2 claims. (o1. 280;-21)

This invention relates to a sled and more particularly to 'a sled, the snow engaging portions of which comprise skis.

The principal object of the invention is the provision of 'a ski sled s0 formed that a banking or tilting of the said portion thereof causes a tilting or banking of the skis thus enabling the ski sled to be steered.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a ski sled wherein the seat and handle portions are pivoted axially in relation to the snow engaging skis utilized and adapted to pivot on the said axis and wherein the pivoting motion is utilized to impart a tilting motion to the snow engaging skis simultaneously. Y

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a ski sled wherein the seat and handle portions are pivoted axially in relation to the snow engaging skis and the supporting members formed thereon and wherein a spring means is employed to normally hold the seat and skis on horizontal planes, respectively.

A still further objects of the invention is the provision of a ski sled provided with foot engaging means formed on each of the skis thereof and a seat and handle member positioned in a movable manner upon the said skis and provided with means whereby the seat may be tilted on the axially extending axis thereof upon the tilting of the skis through the manual engagement and movement of the foot engaging means.

With the foregoing and other objects in View which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made Within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure l is a side elevation of a portion of a ski sled.

Figure 2 is a front elevation of a ski sled with parts in cross-section.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the ski sled showing the complete device.

By referring to the drawing and to Figures 1 and 2 in particular, it will be seen that the ski sled comprises a seat IIJ positioned over and above a pair of skis Il by means of a pair of inverted U-shaped members I2 which members are pivotly positioned with respect to an axially positioned pivot rod I3 which in turn'is held at each end in a movable manner by means of a pair of brackets I4 whichin turn are attached to the seat I9. Formed upon the uppermost por'- tion of one of the members I2 and below one of the brackets I4 there is a spring supporting 'bracket I5 to which there is clamped by means of clamps I6, a leaf spring I1 the uppermost ends of which are adapted to engage the seat member I9. v

The lower-most portions of the inverted U- shaped members I 2V are preferably aflixed by welding to a pair of pivot members I8 which are in turn axially positioned with respect to each of the skis II and which are pivotly mounted upon the skis II by means of a pair of `brackets I9 eachof which is provided with upturned ends 29 which upturned ends 2D are provided with openings through which ends of the member I8 extend.

It will thus be seen that the inverted U- shapedmembers I2 and thepivot members l'are attachedfto the Vskis I I by means of the brackets I9 and that 'the skis are' capable of a pivotal movement about the pivot members I8. It will also be seen that the seat is pivotly mounted with respect to the upper-most or arched portion of the inverted U-shaped members I2 and that it isksupported by the pivot rod I3 which passes through the members I2 and the brackets I4 and I5. In order that the seat may be held in horizontal plane at such time as the skis are in horizontal plane and thus be capable of satisfactorily supporting a person thereon, means comprising a pair of control rods 2| and 22 are positioned between the seat member I 0 and the brackets I9 on each of the skis II by means of secondary brackets 23 formed on each of the brackets I9 midway between the upturned ends 20 thereof which brackets 23 are provided with openings for the reception of the lower-most portion of the rods 2| or 22 and which brackets as may be seen in Figure 2 are positioned on the outermost half of each of the brackets I9, beyond the members I8 and thus olf center with respect to the skis I I. The upper-most ends of the rods 2I and 22 are attached to the seat I0 in a movable manner by means of openings formed in a transversely positioned handle member 24 which is clamped or otherwise affixed to the seat member II) and the opposite ends of which extend outwardly beyond the side of the seat member I0 and are preferably provided with suitable hand grips 25. Still referring to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawing, it Will be seen that the leaf spring Il, clamped to the bracket I5 which in turn is mounted upon the arch-shaped member I2 will normally tend to hold the seat member Ill in horizontal relation therewith thus making it necessary for a person desiring to tilt the skis II so as to steer the ski sled, to oppose the action of the spring I1 by tilting the seat Ill, the spring I1 thus tends at all times to keep the ski sled upon a straight course as at such time as the seat portion I0 is level the skis Il must also be level and no steering action taking place. It is well-known that the steering action resulting from the tilting of a pair of skis takes place due to the actual distortment of the skis themselvesas the same tend, under weight, and particularly upon being tilted, to form long flat bows which naturally result in the sideward travel desired.

In Figure 3 of the drawing, the complete ski sled is illustrated and it will be seen that the skis I I are each provided with a foot engaging member 26 which in turn is provided with a strap 21 so that the riders feet may be positioned on these members and held in place by the straps 21 so that a person riding the ski sled may at al1 times be in full control of the device due to the combined steering actions of the tilting skis caused by the tilting or banking of the seat which is obviously aided by the direct manipulation of the skis through the feet of the rider. Thus due to the construction of the ski sled the tilting of the skis by the feet of the rider will automatically cause the seat portion of the sled to tilt or bank and thus insure the rider remaining on the sled; whereas, if the seat were not banked, the tendency would be to slide off.

It will be obvious that by varying the width of the skis, this invention may be employed as a water sled following the practice of water skis in a manner equally as effective as the use on snow hereinbefore described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A ski sled comprising a pair of skis having a seat member positioned thereon, the said seat member comprising a support member straddling the skis, a bracket positioned on each of the said skis, up-turned ends formed on the said bracket, the said support member pivotally aixed to each of the said bracket on the longitudinal axis thereof, a seat board pivotally affixed to the support member on the longitudinal axis thereof, a handle member positioned transversely of the said seat member and extending beyond the sides thereof, rods connecting the seat board and the outermost edges of the said brackets and movably attached to both and adapted to impart tilting movement of the seat board to each of the said skis therethrough, a U-shaped leaf spring positioned between the said support member and the seat board and adapted to normally maintain the seat board on a horizontal plane in relation to the said support member.

2. A ski sled adapted for use on snow or water and comprising a pair of skis and a seat positioned thereon by means of a supporting structure, the said supporting structurecomprising a pair of arch-shaped members pivotaly axed to the skis by means of pivot members disposed longitudinally in relation to the said skis, a seat board pivotly attached to the said arch-shaped support, the said seat board pivot extending 1ongitudinally thereof, a handle positioned transversely of the said seat board and extending beyond the sides thereof, openings formed in the said handle member beneath the seat portion thereof, brackets positioned on the side skis adjacent the outer-most sides thereof and control rods pivotly aflixed to the said handle by means of the said openings and to the said brackets so that tilting motion imparted to the said seat board is conveyed by the said control rods to the said skis and imparted thereto in desirable degree thus enabling the ski sled to be steered, means for normally maintaining the seat and the skis on a horizontal plane said means comprising a bracket formed on the said support member and a U-shaped leaf spring attached to the said bracket and bearing against the said seat,

RALPH R. SAMPSELL. 

